In March 2013, the National Bank of Serbia (NBS) played host to the first meeting of the 'Belgrade Initiative', intended to improve coordination between the Serbian authorities and the home supervisors of foreign banks operating in the country. This is the local mirror of the Vienna Initiative instituted for the central and eastern Europe (CEE) region in 2009 in an attempt to stop any sharp outflows of western European bank capital and liquidity.
That coordination is particularly important given the significant role of Greek-owned banks in the country, with a market share of assets at about 16% – or closer to 20% if AIK Banka, in which Greece’s Piraeus owns a 20% stake, is included. The four largest Greek banking groups are all undergoing recapitalisation and restructuring due to the massive losses in their home market.
